Empire WatchAnalysis of current world affairs with focus on gloabal struggle for social and economic justice and against racism, war, imperialism and oppression much of it brought on by US Empire and its allies

Ukraine: What Now?

The fact that the US is supporting neo-Nazis in Ukraine in order to bring the country under its hegemony and push NATO further East, right at the borders of Russia, should not surprise anyone. Even before the end of WWII, the US was focusing on fighting communists, even if it meant working with fascists. In 1945, right after the war, with US occupying the nation, they told the Italian government to ban the Communist Party, which was Europe’s largest and most popular, even though they had been the backbone of the resistance against the Nazis in their country. When President Morro insisted on forming a coalition government with the communists who had 37% of the popular vote, Kissinger warned him that he would regret it. Two years later, he was assassinated.

Italy remains occupied to this day, not to prevent fascism from returning, but, to prevent an unfriendly and anti-capitalist government that would oppose US-NATO policies from gaining a foothold. Economically too – and this is the main point – Italy is ruled by imperialism, as the IMF freely imposes its demands and terms on the nation, and its leaders have no choice but to acquiesce. And, it’s the acceptance of such terms – NATO, militarily/politically, and IMF, economically – that’s the real issue. Before the regime change in Ukraine, Victoria Nuland, Undersecretary of State, told US Ambassador to the country who “our guy” was, who then ended up becoming the Prime Minister. What a surprise! Why him? Because he wanted to join NATO and would accept all terms of the IMF loan.

To be sure, the coup was not the end of US intervention in Ukraine, but the beginning. Already, CIA and FBI agents are “providing security” and private security contractors, or rather mercenaries, have been sighted – up to 150 of them – near the Russian borders. And the IMF is threatening the leaders to hurry up and finish off the resistance in the East, or lose the $17 billion loan that’s been promised. Christine Lagarde, IMF managing director, warned on Thursday, that “Should the central government lose effective control over the east, the program will need to be re-designed”, basically, urging them to get tough and put down the unrest in the East. US ambassador to Ukraine. Geoffrey Pyatt, even suggested that the new government in Kiev should use heavy weapons against those who defy the government.

But, this story didn’t begin just recently. While Gorbachev was being promised – lied to – that if the Soviet Union relinquished East Germany, the NATO would not move an inch Eastward and encroach on Russia, US policy makers were already salivating over Eastern Europe, and couldn’t wait to break their promise. All the Eastern European nations and former republics of the Soviet Union became immediate targets to bring under the rule of the corporate Empire and make them clients of the IMF and sources of big untapped profits, while surrounding Russia with military bases and heavy arms and setting the grounds for an eventual regime change there, too.

The ground gets set for regime change starting with US-AID and so-called “non-governmental organizations”. Most of the money spent – in the case of Ukraine, $5 billion – goes towards bribes, propaganda, buying off of reporters and leaders, inciting protests and giving arms, intelligence and equipment to opposition, including the neo-Nazis, who don’t seem to bother the policy makers of the Empire with their presence in the new government.

The fact is: the US and its allies are joined at the hip with fascists and share a common destiny with them. Fascism never leaves capitalism; it grows out of its very logic and nature and is a part of it – a hidden part, albeit. But, the veil comes off, sooner or later. They can try and deceive people with their lies and claims of democracy, only for so long and only to a degree. That’s because capitalism is by nature anti-democratic and anti-working class and hence unpopular, and when things go from bad to worse and profits are squeezed, you can see its true ugly face scowling at you from under the veil of fake democracy, ready to jump out and grab you by the throat. Even the war against Nazis by the Western allies was not against fascism, per se, but, against giving up their spoils to the Nazi challengers. It was about who would get to rule the gang and who would get or keep what parts of the world to enrich its ruling class. The challenger to the Empire wanted a piece – a very big piece, to be sure – of the action and had to be defeated. Now, the Europeans are content with what the boss leaves for them to feed on, including the European people. Capitalists may use racism to their advantage whenever possible, but, are “equal opportunity” exploiters.

Before the breakup of the Soviet Union, they were compelled to compete with the socialist alternative, which many in Europe were calling for. The Marshall Plan that was meant to help Europe get back on its feet economically, was the carrot, where the stick might have failed to stifle the call for an alternative to a system that increasingly puts the power in the hands of corporations that ultimately see the future of their rule in limiting people’s freedoms and end up rolling their tanks in the streets. Today, however, without a powerful challenger and competitor, they feel free to do as they please. A powerful empire, feeling invincible and going after new territories and sources of riches has never been a harbinger of anything good for humanity or the planet.

Today, the fascists are a useful tool to help bring Ukraine into their sphere of control and dictate the IMF austerity measures on them. Tomorrow, they may very well be the sole rulers. After all, they and their capitalist cousins both want the same thing: unquestioning rule of capital, with fascists a step ahead of the “liberals”. Obama and the rest of the US military-industrial-finance-complex may be presenting themselves as liberals and democrats, and getting the support of the naive, but, they will do for Empire what they have to. They have their teeth in the flesh of the people of Ukraine and are not willing to let go.

In the photo: US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland together with Neo Nazi Svoboda leader Oleh Tyahnybok (left)